Semi di memoria e gerarchie di purezza. L’esperienza di Terre Altre nel recupero delle sementi antiche

This article aims to analyse the practices of heirloom seeds recovery and cultivation by the cooperative Terre Altre through the framework of the anthropology of agriculture. These activities are intertwined with the protection of agricultural biodiversity, which constitutes an important biosocial archive for the community. The conservation of this heritage takes place in situ, without uprooting it from its local context, as happens in the seed banks. The case of Terre Altre represents a form of resistance to agrarian commodification promoted by GMO agriculture; moreover, it has to be distinguished from the hierarchies of purity typical of organic food. Despite its precarious position in the territory of the Fiemme Valley, this cooperative has been able to combine the recovery of common knowledge and heritage with the opening to Alpine tourism. It proposes an alternative model of agriculture based on reciprocity, redistribution, and home-gardening.